Rapid Diagnostic Service (RDS)

The Rapid Diagnostic Service (RDS) is a new clinic that has been set up to investigate vague symptoms that may be a sign of a number of conditions, including cancer.

You may be referred to the RDS at East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust if your GP feels your symptoms urgently need further investigation. There are many conditions your symptoms may be linked to, including the possibility of cancer.

Being referred to this service means your GP is concerned you may have cancer however the majority of patients seen by the service are diagnosed with other conditions.

What happens when my GP refers me to the RDS?

We will contact you to arrange a clinic appointment with one of our rapid diagnostic service clinical nurse specialists, who will talk through the GP’s referral and your symptoms.

To help us contact you quickly, please ensure your GP practice has your current contact details including your mobile phone number (if you have one) and your correct postal address. We’ll use this information to contact you and book your appointment.

Once you’ve had your initial contact with the specialist nurse your case will be discussed in one of our multi-disciplinary meetings with doctors, radiologists and nurses to decide your plan of care. You will be contacted as to what this plan will be by the nurse specialist.

Your appointment

Once you’ve had the appropriate investigations you will be assigned a clinic appointment with the RDS consultant. It’s very important that you attend this appointment. Please call the RDS nurse specialist immediately if you are unable to keep your appointment, you’ll then need to arrange an alternative.

Your test results

The results from any investigations will be discussed with you and explained. If no cause for your symptoms can be found, you will be referred back to your GP.

Help and support

You may benefit from our psychologist support and a referral can be made should you like ongoing support during and after the investigations.